FT MEADE 









A 


DISCOURSE 

DELIVERED OCTOBER 1, 1851, 

ON OCCASION OF THE INAUGURATION 

OF THE 

REV. WM. H. CAMPBELL, D. D., 

AS PROFESSOR OF BIBLICAL LITERATURE, 

IN THE 

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY OF THE REFORMED DUTCH CHURCH, 
NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J. 

. /' 

BY DUNCAN KENNEDY, D. D., 

MINISTER OF THE NORTH DUTCH CHURCH, ALBANY, N. Y. 






ALBANY: 

GRAY, SPRAGUE & CO, 



1 7Z'l 


JOEL MUNSELL, PRINTER, 
ALBANY. 


DISCOURSE. 


Rom. XI: IB . — I magnify mine office . 

No two names can be found, designating 
the same person, that suggest wider ex- 
tremes of moral character, than Saul the 
persecutor and Paul the apostle. The an- 
nouncement of the former presents to the 
mind the embodiment of some of the most 
repulsive elements of depraved humanity; 
and he who bears it stands before us a cruel 
bigot, a bitter reviler, a bold blasphemer, 
whose concentrated energies are devoted to 
the single work of making “ havoc of the 
church,” sustained by an intensity of malig- 
nant feeling which is constantly “ breathing 
out threatenings and slaughter against the 
disciples of the Lord.” At the mention of 
the latter, the painful vision becomes in- 
stantly dissolved ; and the mind is contem- 


4 


plating the character of one, who, possessed 
of the highest attributes of sanctified hu- 
manity, of enlarged charity, unwavering per- 
severance, and unbounded love to God and 
man, is preaching the “ faith which he once 
destroyed.” 

Here is indeed a wonderful contrast. W ell 
may we ask how the mighty transformation 
was eflected. And it is no less a dictate of 
reason than of scripture to reply, — what 
power but that which is absolutely infinite 
— which at first called the earth out of no- 
thing, and from the shapeless void, evoked 
light and order, and beauty, could subjugate 
and harmonize the fierce and warring ele- 
ments that had controlled, with such fearful 
authority, this mighty and rebellious spirit ? 
In the simple story of the journey to Damas- 
cus, are given the details of this moral revo- 
lution; and in the light that shone about 
him “above the brightness of the sun,” and 
in the “voice” that spoke to his inmost be- 
ing, we detect the invincible agency by 
which, Saul the persecutor, became Paul the 
apostle. The -ferocity of the lion has given 


5 


place to the gentleness of the lamb. The 
heart, once the seat of the most violent pas- 
sions — pride, cruelty, malignant hate, has 
become the altar from which ascends the 
hallowed incense of the tenderest emotions, 
the holiest affections — humility, pity, univer- 
sal love. He is henceforth engaged in a 
work, different from that which had before 
engrossed his powerful energies — a work cor- 
responding to the blessed change that had 
passed upon him. Called to be an apostle, 
to bear the tidings of salvation to his fellow 
men, he girded himself for the glorious enter- 
prise, and with unflagging devotion and 
heroic courage, he endured every hardship, 
encountered every danger, bearing to the 
last the “testimony of a good conscience,” 
and the smiles of an approving God. It is 
from the lips of such an one, while suffering 
the contempt of the learned, the scorn of the ’ 
great, and the opposition of all, that we hear 
the animating exclamation, I magnify mine 
office. 

The word “magnify,” employed to express 
the qualities of an object or pursuit, conveys 


6 


the idea of something highly esteemed, ex- 
alted, honorable, glorious. And this is the 
estimate which Paul put on the office he sus- 
tained as a minister of Jesus Christ. In the 
deep convictions of his sanctified spirit, that 
office was invested with such true moral dig- 
nity, such unrivalled excellence, such sur- 
passing honor, that instead of yielding to de- 
pression, or shrinking with conscious shame 
before the enemies of the cross, he, on the 
contrary, cordially exulted in his calling, and 
in the contemplation of its divine appoint- 
ment, its elevated relations, and its ample re- 
sources. He never failed to gather strength 
for the duties it imposed, and courage for 
the trials it occasioned. 

And sure I am, my brethren, that by all 
Avho justly apprehend the nature of the 
ministry of reconciliation, the language of 
the apostle can not be regarded as extrava- 
gant, but as containing words of truth and 
soberness. 

To meet the spirit of the occasion, I have 
selected as the theme of my discourse, The 
DIGNITY OF THE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY, Suggested 


7 


by tlie brief but sententious passage before 
us, — I magnify mine office. 

The dignity of the Christian ministry may 
be seen by contemplating, 

The authority by which it acts ; 

The objects ivhich it contemplates ; 

The means which it employs; 

The aids which are pledged to it. 

I. The authority by which it acts. 

That the Christian ministry has had its 
origin in an appointment directly from Hea- 
ven, it were folly for any to question, who 
bow to the teachings of revelation. This 
claim has been asserted from the beginning, 
and in not a single instance has it ever been 
modified or relinquished. We conclude, as 
by intuition, that it pertains to God alone 
to institute an office, the appropriate func- 
tions of which have exclusive reference to 
spiritual duties and relations. This prero- 
gative He has ever exercised in all the ap- 
pointments of his kingdom of grace, and its 
record is found in the history of every dis- 
pensation of religion. 


8 


The first who ever reared an altar and pre- 
sented an oblation, was doubtless the com- 
mon progenitor of our race ; and as no dic- 
tate of reason could have led him to sup- 
pose that the streaming blood of an immo- 
lated victim could expiate the guilt of his 
soul, we must conclude that he acted under 
the sanction of a divine command. The pa- 
ternal and sacerdotal functions were thus 
for a time united. And when, at a subse- 
quent period, the family relation became ex- 
panded into the wider circle of the state or 
commonwealth, the Patriarch united in him- 
self the prerogatives of both King and Priest, 
as co-ordinate functions and powers. 

There was thus, under the earliest dispen- 
sations of religion, associated with the priest- 
ly office, something dignified and venerable ; 
and as a divine appointment, there was ob- 
viously a sacredness inseparable from the 
person of him, who, in the character of inter- 
cessor, and as a constituted medium between 
the visible and the invisible, stood officially 
nearer to the Divinity than did the rest of 
the people. 


9 


At a still later period, — among the nations 
of Israel, — the institution of the priesthood 
became more clearly defined, was restricted 
to a single tribe, and made hereditary in the 
family of Aaron. The solemn dignity and 
awful sacredness with which it became hence- 
forth invested, are seen in the imposing cir- 
cumstances that accompanied its appoint- 
ment at the base of Sinai, in the minuteness 
of detail that marked its elaborate and com- 
plicated ritual, and the stem jealousy with 
which it was guarded against the intrusion 
of any who might profanely covet its prero- 
gatives. 

Tet this system, appointed as it was by 
divine authority, was nevertheless designed 
to answer only a temporary purpose. It 
was too ceremonial and material, too carnal 
and sanguinary, for a perpetual or ultimate 
institution. It was felt by the wise and holy 
of the people themselves, that the sacerdotal 
office, though the centre of their hopes, vene- 
rable and glorious as it was, was but typical 
of another and higher order of things. It 
was felt by the pious Jew, that the blood of 
2 


10 


his numberless victims had no inherent pow- 
er to put away sin, and that the fragrance 
of his incense floating perpetually toward 
Heaven, could not commend his imperfect 
prayers to a holy God. He knew that these 
only prefigured another altar, another sacri- 
fice, and another priesthood, and looked for- 
ward in faith and hope to the time when re- 
volving years should usher in the promised 
Messiah. It was the same conviction, be- 
gotten, doubtless, by some partial commun- 
ion with the Jewish scriptures, that led the 
Grecian sage, with a faith stronger than his 
philosophy could inspire, to utter the memo- 
rable declaration, that without a messenger 
from Heaven itself, man could never disco- 
ver nor pursue the path of duty. The hope 
of the Israelite was at length realized, and 
the oracular dream of the pagan philosopher 
fulfilled. From the mysterious abode of the 
Eternal, across the hitherto impassable gulf 
that separates the visible from the invisible, 
came at last the Celestial Messenger, the 
Divine Teacher, the “ great High Priest of 
our profession.” He came to execute the sa- 


11 


cerdotal office in the mysterious union of the 
human and divine natures — the victim was 
Himself; the objects, the guilty inhabitants 
of this world ; and the interested and bene- 
fited spectators, “thrones, dominions, prin- 
cipalities, and powers.” 

The dignity of such a priest, the awful 
grandeur of such a sacrifice, what mind can 
conceive, what language express? And yet 
it is from this Great High Priest, from the 
essential divinity of his nature, from the 
unspeakable glory of his mediatorial office, 
the dignity of the ministerial character is 
derived, as to the supreme authority by 
which it executes its high and solemn func- 
tions. 

I say not that the ministry of the New 
Testament is in all respects identical with 
that of the Old. There is now no official 
earthly priesthood, for the one great sacri- 
fice has been offered “once for all;” there 
is now no visible altar, no ritual ceremonial, 
no outward incense. And yet I do say, that 
as a divinely appointed agency to meet the 
spiritual wants of the world, the ministry 


12 


is not peculiar to the Christian dispensation. 
The ministry, and in its most important at- 
tributes, the Christian ministry too, has ex- 
isted under every revelation of the gospel as 
the medium of spiritual intercourse between 
Heaven and earth. Change of names, or of 
forms, or of outward service, does nothing to 
disturb what is strictly essential to the great 
ministerial function, nor to mar the integ- 
rity of that gracious system in which it has 
ever held an indispensable place. 

The last and highest type of this order of 
human agency, however, has been estab- 
lished by the authority of “ God manifest in 
the flesh." Hence it is recorded, “ when he as- 
cended up on high, he led captivity captive, 
and gave gifts unto men ; and he gave some 
apostles; and some prophets ; and some evan- 
gelists; and some pastors and teachers.” 
The first two of these orders were obviously 
extraordinary and temporary, and hence with 
the close of the canon of inspiration, when pro- 
phets had declared the will of God to its com- 
pletion, and apostles had rendered ample tes- 
timony to the resurrection, there was no longer 


13 


need of the exercise of their peculiar functions, 
and they were consequently suspended. Only 
the last two — “ evangelists f together with 
“pastors and teachers can with any show of 
reason be regarded as ordinary and per- 
petual ; and these constitute really and truly, 
the ministry of the present dispensation. 
To this ministry, the commission and the 
promise which Christ gave to his disciples 
originally, remain applicable and efficient, 
in perpetuity; and these gifts of the august 
Founder of this ministry, invest it with an 
essential and relative dignity that attaches 
to no other existing human agency. 

The source of our authority, then, is God ; 
the charter of our rights, prerogatives, and 
powers bears the signature of Heaven ! And 
hence, also, the appropriateness of the de- 
signation — “ ambassadors for Christ How 
sublimely expressive of unequalled honor ! 
Earthly ambassadors are called to represent 
the person, and guard the interests of the 
courts by whom they are appointed. The 
minister of Christianity is an Ambassador of 
Christ, a representative on earth of the 


14 


august court of the God of Heaven. And 
as the ambassadors of this world partake of 
the dignity of that authority whose high 
commission they bear, so has the minister of 
Jesus reflected upon him the honor and 
glory of Him who is King of Zion. 

“ There stands the messenger of truth, 
there stands the legate of the skies ! His 
theme divine, His office sacred, his creden- 
tials clear.’ ’ 

Let me not be charged with an undue es- 
timate of the office of which I speak. I make 
a distinction between the office itself, and 
the earthen vessel to which this treasure of 
the gospel is committed. In myself I am 
nothing. I am sorrowfully conscious of ma- 
nifold defects and infirmities. But how- 
ever lightly I may and must esteem myself, 
still I know that things common and mean 
in themselves, acquire unspeakable excel- 
lence and importance from association and 
destiny ; and looking, therefore, at my hea- 
venly credentials, and tracing my commis- 
sion to its high and exclusive source, I can 
hold up my head, for I know I am speaking 


15 


on behalf, and acting under the authority of 
the God of the universe ! This it is that 
exalts my vocation ; and this it is that jus- 
tifies every minister of Christ, however weak 
and imperfect in himself, in shouting the 
exclamation of the apostle, I magnify mine 
office. 

II. The dignity of the Christian ministry 
may be seen, in the second place, by consi- 
dering The objects it contemplates. 

Time will allow me to speak of but few of 
these, and such only as have reference to the 
present and future welfare of man. In all 
the departments of man’s social condition, 
we discover ample proofs of the salutary in- 
fluence which the ministry is fitted to exert. 
Our own observation, as well as the voice of 
history, and the deductions of reason, bears 
ample testimony on this point. Select a 
community in any part of the world, where 
is found an enlightened and faithful minis- 
try, and compare it with any other where 
the voice of the herald of salvation has not 
been heard, and the mighty contrast that 


16 

obtains between the social and moral condi- 
tion of the two must be decisive of the salu- 
tary influence of this sacred institution. In 
the one case, sobriety, virtue, intelligence, 
and prosperity will be visible ; in the other, 
disorder, vice, ignorance and degeneracy will 
be the predominant elements. Let the func- 
tions of the ministry be suspended, in the 
most orderly society around you, and the 
sabbath will no longer be regarded ; let the 
sabbath be abolished, and the most efficient 
restraint upon human depravity is taken 
away, and the most powerful barrier to the 
progress of anarchy, social and moral, is at 
once destroyed. 

There is no system of philosophy adequate 
to arrest this downward tendency of fallen 
humanity. Systems, I know, have been de- 
vised, and no age has been more prolific in 
such schemes than the present, but all 
have failed to accomplish what they pro- 
mised. The very best of them, so far from 
exerting any really elevating and purifying 
influence upon the heart, have been found 
only powerful agents in increasing its blind- 


17 


ness and depravity. They may have modi- 
fied, to some extent, the grosser forms of vice, 
but they have only refined them into more 
pervasive and destructive elements of de- 
gradation and ruin. 

The influence of the pulpit upon the intel- 
lectual condition of man, is a subject worthy 
the profoundest thought of all who are lovers 
of their kind. If you trace the progress of 
human knowledge in all the diversified re- 
lations of the arts and sciences, you will 
unquestionably find that the source of its 
reality, its depth, its comprehensiveness, is 
the Bible. But whence came the Bible, and 
how is its influence rendered most practi- 
cally beneficial ? It came from God, it is 
true ; but it came through the medium of the 
ministry of holy men, who spake and wrote 
as “ they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” 
There is a sense, then — a most important 
sense, in which the Bible was written by the 
ministry as well as for it; in which the minis- 
try sustains to that sacred volume the rela- 
tion of author as well as preacher , and the 
3 


18 


latter of these is as important in its place, 
for the accomplishment of the objects of 
divine benevolence toward this world, as the 
former. And wherever the Bible, unclasped 
and unchained, has kept its place in the 
pulpit, and the man of God has been permit- 
ted to proclaim its contents to the people in 
simplicity and godly sincerity, intellect has 
received its highest impulses, and the ener- 
gies of the spiritual nature have been aroused 
to their noblest exertions. There is no agen- 
cy under Heaven, that can bear with so much 
power upon the convictions and motives of 
humanity as the ministry of the gospel. 

Compared with the attainments of the 
human mind under the influence of Christi- 
anity, all its achievements amid the most 
favourable auspices of paganism, are light 
and trivial. Compare the progress of the 
world, during the four thousand years that 
preceded the advent, with its progress du- 
ring the less than two thousand that have 
since elapsed, and tell me what are the 
practical fruits of the aggregate wisdom of 
the former compared with those of the latter 


19 


period? What, for the most part, but child- 
ish hypotheses, vague speculations, elaborate 
triflings? I have no disposition to depreci- 
ate the intellect of the sages of antiquity. 
In painting and sculpture, in poetry and 
eloquence, they doubtless attained a distin- 
guished position. I only mean to say, that 
their highest attainments in mental, moral, 
and physical science were comparatively 
insignificant, and in their influence for the 
elevation and purity of the people, almost 
powerless. Long before the apostle Paul 
had begun to preach to the gentiles the doc- 
trine of the cross, philosophers of various 
sects and countries had published their di- 
versified systems of ethics and religion ; but 
between the most sincere and distinguished 
of them all, there was a constant conflict of 
opinion. Upon no one point of real impor- 
tance was there any substantial agreement. 
Much was uttered concerning the “ spirit that 
is in man,” and its innate longings after hap- 
piness ; but they were never able to analyze 
its mysterious powers, or satisfy the desires 
which they consciously cherished. They 


20 


were ignorant of the nature of good and evil, 
and disagreed, even as to the divine exist- 
ence. If they cherished hopes of the immor- 
tality of the soul, they were continually 
haunted by the most painful misgivings. 
Of the resurrection of the body they had not 
the slightest conception, and upon the re- 
gion beyond the grave there rested the veil 
of an impenetrable darkness ! It was re- 
served for teachers mightier than those of 
the Academy or the Lyceum, to proclaim to 
the world those great principles upon which 
its elevation, and purity, and glory, are 
made to rest. It was the prerogative of the 
Fishermen of Galilee, though in a sense 
different from what was originally charged 
upon them, to “ turn the world upside down.” 
And the intellectual and moral revolutions 
that everywhere marked their course, gave 
a sublime attestation to the mighty power 
they were appointed to wield. From that 
period the human mind received an impulse 
which has carried it on in a course of pro- 
gressive development to the present hour ; 
and which will never be impeded nor arrest- 


21 


ed while tdje pulpit continues to exert its 
legitimate influence upon the nations of the 
earth. 

The great principle of the inductive phi- 
losophy, by which such sublime discoveries 
have been made, serving to improve so 
greatly the condition of human existence, 
and as it were, enlarging the boundaries of 
the universe, was not invented by Bacon, 
though it is connected with his name. It 
was only discovered by him where it had 
always existed — in the Bible — and applied 
to the investigation of the laws of nature. 
The ministry of Christ had long, had always, 
been familiar with it ; for all its instrac- 
tions had, from the beginning been based 
upon, and deduced from, the authentic and 
incontrovertible facts of divine revelation. 
The honor, therefore, does not belong pri- 
marily to the coronet of Bacon, but is re- 
flected to him from the crown of the ministry 
of Jesus. 

There is not a spot on the map of the 
world, on which this ministry has exert- 
ed its legitimate influence, where the human 


22 


mind has not steadily advanced in the scale 
of intelligence, and sought to realize the 
august destiny of its rational and immortal 
nature. And no where has there been a re- 
trocession in these onward movements, no 
where has darkness at any time returned 
upon the minds of the people, where “gross 
darkness ” had not first enveloped those who 
ministered at the altars of religion. The 
gloom of the middle ages had never found a 
place in the history of the world, had not 
the Bible been first closed, and its author- 
ized expounders proved recreant to their 
high and solemn responsibilities. 

In like manner must it be said, that the 
ministry of the gospel constitutes a most 
essential element in the progress of civilization. 
The science of government, the theory of 
civil and religious liberty, are properly un- 
derstood and appreciated only where the 
pulpit is true to its glorious mission. I can 
not enter into any analysis of this point, 
though the field is both ample and inviting. 
Suffice it to say, there is not now, and there 
never has been a nation on earth possessing 


23 


or valuing rational freedom, among whom 
the ministry of Christ has not exerted its 
benign influence. Christianity has effected, 
in this respect, entire and most salutary 
revolutions, wherever its principles have 
been faithfully inculcated, thus not only me- 
liorating the theory of general government, 
but renovating, and rendering congenial and 
healthful the whole system and details of 
social life. 

It is true, then, not only in poetry, but 
also in plain prose, that 

“ the pulpit, in the sober use 

Of its legitimate peculiar powers, 

Must stand acknowledged while the world shall 
stand, 

The most important and effectual guard, 

Support, and ornament of virtue’s cause.” 

But to the ministry of the gospel apper- 
tain still higher honors, as it is appointed to 
confer yet greater benefits on the world. 
Were the good which Christianity achieves 
on behalf of man, limited to temporal rela- 
tions only, — were its principles which have 
the greatest certainty as demonstrated 
truths; which form the noblest subjects of 


24 


contemplation; which refine the taste, re- 
strain the passions, and purify the heart ; 
which curb the selfishness of communities, 
and establish the most elevated social polity 
among the great brotherhood of nations, 
were these limited in their influence to the 
narrow sphere of the present life, even then 
Christianity were indeed worthy the admi- 
ration, the homage, the devotion of the 
world. But these benefits, notwithstanding 
their intrinsic value, are trifling considera- 
tions in comparison with others. The gospel 
has to do pre-eminently, with man’s spiritual 
nature, and has a direct bearing upon inte- 
rests that affect his eternal destiny. 

That the moral world is in a fallen, alien- 
ated, and lost condition, is a truth attested 
as well by individual consciousness, and the 
records of universal history, as by the testi- 
mony of Revelation. In his depravity, the 
revolted creature is conscious of insecurity, 
and the irrepressible monitions of conscience 
beget painful anxieties and fears, which po in- 
structions from the oracle of nature has ade- 
quate power to allay. No ray of mercy from 


25 


the throne of God has penetrated to the dark 
and disordered spirit ; and his inmost being 
is constantly disturbed by premonitions of 
judgment, and the dreadful forebodings of 
eternal sorrow. It is in reference to this 
condition of humanity, that the command is 
given to the ministry of Christ, “Go ye into 
all the world, and preach the gospel to every 
creature.” And in obedience to this com- 
mand, sustained by the authority and ani- 
mated by the spirit of its glorious Author, 
the ministry goes forth on its benevolent 
mission. It preaches the gospel, — the gos- 
pel as a source of light, making known a new 
element in the character of God — an element 
of mercy. And while it represents human 
guilt in all its dark and dread atrocity, and 
denounces against it the displeasure of the 
Most High, it at the same time points to 
Calvary as the source of expiation, and the 
medium and pledge of a full and eternal par- 
don. It preaches the gospel as a source of 
power, by which the bondage of depravity is 
broken, the prey is taken from the mighty, 
and the captive is made free. It preaches 
4 


26 


the gospel as a source of consolation , by which 
the spirit is sustained and cheered amid all 
the trials of life, till death itself falls a con- 
quered monster at his feet, and he is away 
to the bosom of his Father and his God. 

And I ask, must not the instrumentality 
that stands connected with such glorious 
results as these, be of all others the most 
dignified and important ? It is the province 
of this agency, and of none other, to stand at 
the very fountain-head of all grace, and to 
proclaim to the entire world, as the repre- 
sentative of the Divinity, that glorious de- 
vice of mercy, which is emphatically “the 
wisdom of God, and the power of God unto 
salvation.” It is the prerogative of the 
minister, officially and with authority , to take 
his place on the summit of Calvary, and from 
amid the effulgent glory by which it is 
crowned, to preach the cross, — not the wood 
of the cross, not the figure of the cross, but 
the doctrine of the cross; to preach the 
mercy of Him by whose blood the cross was 
stained ; to make known the promise which 
on the cross was sealed, the redemption 


27 


which on the cross was achieved, the new 
and better covenant whicli on the cross was 
ratified, and that glorious and powerful in- 
fluence which goes forth from the cross to 
enlighten, regenerate, and save the world. 
And tell me, does not he hold a most sublime 
position, and does not an awful dignity at- 
tach to his vocation, who is thus called to 
study, to expound, to proclaim this amazing 
theory of grace, which not only contributes 
so much to man’s present good, but which 
operating upon the highest elements of his 
being, transforms his spiritual relations, 
changes his spiritual appetences, elevates 
his spiritual condition, and ultimately glori- 
fies his spiritual nature ! Surely there is 
infinite propriety and reason in the raptu- 
rous exclamation of the apostle, “ I magnify 
mine office.” 

III. We see the dignity of the ministry, 
thirdly , by contemplating the means which it 
employs. 

Though several agencies might be men- 
tioned, having a combined and concurrent 


28 


influence in accomplishing the objects of the 
ministry, yet there is one that holds such a 
pre-eminence above all others, that we shall 
confine our attention to it alone ; it is Truth — 
“ the truth as it is in Jesus.” This is the 
“ sword of the spirit / 7 in wielding which, 
the ministry is, instrumentally, to achieve 
the conquest of the world. It is appointed 
to expound, illustrate and enforce the en- 
tire system of Revelation. And what grand 
and sublime disclosures of truth are there 
made ! How comprehensive and profound, 
how noble and soul-stirring the themes there 
presented for investigation ! The being and 
attributes, the works and government of 
God ; the apostacy and the depravity of man ; 
the dispensation of mercy for his recovery 
and salvation; the incarnation and resur- 
rection of the Redeemer ; the mission of the 
Spirit ; the regeneration of the soul, its im- 
mortality and its endless destiny! These 
are glorious subjects embracing in their 
mighty sweep eternity past and eternity to 
come, all that is mysterious in God, all that 
is interesting in man, all that is attractive 


29 


in Heaven, all tliat is terrible in Hell, and 
involving considerations ever fitted alter- 
nately to attract and appal, to awe with 
reverence and thrill with joy! 

There are features that mark the truth 
which the ambassador of Christ is appointed 
to proclaim as the means of the world’s 
regeneration, that incontestibly prove its 
adaptedness to this work. 

It is infallible truth. The most highly prized 
productions of men, are marred by pervading 
imperfections. But the Author of Revela- 
tion is pre-eminently the “God of truth.” 
He dwelleth in light, and hath no fellowship 
with darkness. And as the beam partakes 
of the highest purity of the source whence it 
emanates, the message which the ministry is 
appointed to proclaim, must be light, as its 
source is light, and in it is no darkness at all. 

It is comprehensive truth ; and in this re- 
spect meets all the demands of the human 
intellect. Even those truths indicated by 
the volume of nature, stand out upon the 
page of Revelation in bolder relief; while 
others are there developed, concerning which 


30 


the oracle of nature is utterly silent. Na- 
ture knows nothing of a system of grace, and 
consequently, however her teachings may be 
adapted to instruct, they are not adequate 
to save. 

It is truth characterized by simplicity. It 
is based upon facts, — facts susceptible of the 
most ample proof, and on a level with the 
capacity of all. Here grandeur and beauty, 
simplicity and sublimity, are so inimitably 
combined and harmonized, that while it fur- 
nishes the profoundest instruction to the 
sage, it may at the same time, be appre- 
hended, appreciated, and loved by the child. 

It is truth no less distinguished for its 
harmony with the convictions of reason. In 
nothing is violence done to any conclusion 
reached by a legitimate process of rational 
investigation. And though, as in nature, 
there are parts of the great system of re- 
vealed truth that are above and beyond the 
grasp of reason, there are none that are con- 
trary to it. There are none, bowing to which 
in reverent submission, human reason is- not 
elevated and honored. 


31 


And I add, also, that the teaching of the 
gospel message, harmonizes no less fully 
with the analogy of nature. Indeed the pro- 
gressive developments of science in all ages, 
have served only to give additional illustra- 
tion and confirmation to the truths of scrip- 
ture. Nature has never spoken one word in 
opposition to Revelation. There is not a 
star that shines in the deep vault of heaven, 
there is not an insect that floats in the ra- 
diance of the summer’s sun, there is not a 
flower that breathes it's fragrance upon the 
air, there is not a rock that has its place in 
the deep-laid foundations of the earth, but 
gives a distinct and obvious confirmation to 
the utterances of Revelation. These two 
great sources of truth can not be in conflict 
with each other; and when their testimony 
is properly interpreted, their mutual harmo- 
ny establishes the claims of both to the 
same divine and glorious authorship. 

Such then is the great instrumentality 
which the ministry is to employ in the work 
assigned to it. It is truth; truth in the 
strength of its principles — truth in the grand- 


32 


eur of its discoveries — truth in the power of 
its motives — truth revealed in the Bible, cor- 
roborated in nature, and illustrated in every 
department of the mental, moral, and phy- 
sical universe. It is this instrumentality 
that the preacher of the gospel is to bring to 
bear upon the minds and hearts of his fel- 
low men, and by which he is to labor for 
their salvation. To investigate, explain and 
inculcate truth , is the great business of his 
life ; this is his “ calling of God,” and to this 
he is to devote all the energies of his being. 

And if, in passing, I might pause to note 
an inference that forces itself upon the mind, 

I would say, that if the relation which the 
ministry sustains to the truth of God, be dis- 
tinguished for its dignity, it is no less distin- 
guished for its responsibility. If the preacher 
be thus constituted the expounder of truth 
to the world, is it not his imperative duty 
to become himself familiar with its teach- 
ings? The science of theology is of all others 
the most profound, and consequently de- 
mands the best mental qualifications, as it 
furnishes scope for the highest order of 


33 


intellectual endowments. And yet tlie im- 
pression rests upon many minds, that the 
work of the ministry requires but little 
ability and little qualification. And it too 
often happens that when the candidate for 
this holy office leaves the Theological school, 
he partially, if not wholly, abandons those 
habits of close investigation and critical re- 
search which he was taught there to culti- 
vate. And the consequences resulting from 
such a course, are too obvious to be men- 
tioned. 

It is a common remark, that education, 
properly so called, is the business of the 
life; — that the student when leaving the 
halls of science, instead of abandoning study, 
and resting in inglorious satisfaction, as if 
he had already attained or were already per- 
fect, should be constantly incited by a thirst 
for knowledge,— an “appetite that grows by 
what it feeds on,” to prosecute his investi- 
gations, employing former acquisitions as 
the means of making still higher attain- 
ments. And if this be true of those engaged 
in secular studies and pursuits, with how 
5 


34 


much greater emphasis must it apply to the 
student of the sacred oracles, the accredited 
teacher of his fellow men in the sublime 
mysteries of Christianity. Does it not de- 
volve upon such an one to bring to his high 
duties, not only zeal, sincerity, and faith, 
but also the utmost force of his intellect, 
illumined by all the light which the ever- 
expanding circle of knowledge can diffuse. 

If God has condescended to give to the 
world a written revelation of his will, and 
has, as by a protracted miracle, preserved 
that sacred depository of truth uncontami- 
nated from age to age, must it not be the 
duty and privilege of the authorized ex- 
pounder of the sacred scriptures, to be able 
at all times, to go to the original record, and 
there learn “ what is the mind of the Spirit,” 
in the very language which the Holy Ghost 
has employed ? If it be deemed so important 
that the productions of the Poets, Histo- 
rians and Orators of antiquity should be 
studied in the garb in which they invested 
their sentiments, as they came fresh and 
glowing from the inspirations of genius ; is 


35 


it too much to ask, that the same amount of 
labor should be brought to bear upon the 
Book of books, assisted by those ample means 
and appliances which Biblical literature and 
collateral studies are enabled to furnish ? 

It has been said, indeed, that a very 
limited acquaintance with scripture is suffi- 
cient to answer the great purpose of the 
soul’s conversion, and therefore, that the 
minister is not called upon to engage in such 
profound investigations of the sacred record. 

But, granting the premises to be true, are 
we to pause at the mere point of conversion ? 
Is not the edification, the enlargement, the 
elevation of the regenerated spirit, a most 
distinguished privilege and a most com- 
manding duty? Are not expanded views, 
solemn impressions, transcendent motives 
needed, that the soul may be properly edu- 
cated for its high destiny ? And whence can 
these be derived so readily and successfully 
as from the deep things of Revelation ? The 
gospel is indeed fitted to bless the ignorant, 
and guide him on the way to Heaven ; but 
it is unspeakably more influential, and a 


36 


thousand fold more attractive to him who 
has become deeply versed in its profound and 
solemn mysteries. The material firmament 
would reflect the same light and shed the 
same genial influence, though every eye re- 
garded it but as a mere canopy designed 
only to curtain the globe we inhabit; and 
though every mind that contemplated it 
were ignorant of the gorgeous retinue of 
worlds that sweep through its limitless ex- 
panse. Yet when by the aid of astronomy 
the awful depths of immensity are penetra- 
ted, and the mind is led to gaze wit h an en- 
larged and strengthened vision upon the won- 
ders that rise from the fathomless abyss, are 
we to say that no real good is derived — 
that no substantial benefit is experienced ? 
When those dazzling points that stud the 
evening sky — once scarcely noticed except 
with childish curiosity — become enlarged 
into majestic spheres; and orbs before un- 
seen and unknown, stand out, inconceivable 
in number, in magnitude and effulgence, 
how does the soul become impressed and 
awed by such sublime demonstrations of the 


37 


wisdom, power, and grandeur of the Creator; 
and where else can it be found in an attitude 
so fitted to sympathize in the language of 
the Psalmist, “ Great and marvellous are thy 
works, Lord God Almighty; in wisdom hast 
thou made them all ?” And thus is it with 
the more glorious firmament of Revelation. 
How is faith strengthened, and reverence 
deepened, and devotion brightened, when its 
mysterious depths are explored, with dili- 
gence, meekness and prayer. When that 
which was before but dimly visible, is seen 
to shine with inconceivable lustre ; and that 
which was before contracted, expands into 
illimitable dimensions ; and orbs of truth be- 
fore undiscovered, burst forth on every side, 
filling the field of spiritual vision with the 
radiance of a steady and unutterable glory, 
how irresistibly is the soul impelled to ex- 
claim, “ Oh the depth of the riches both of 
the wisdom and knowledge of God ! how un- 
searchable are his judgments, and his ways 
past finding out!” And how does it seem 
to realize the fulfilment of the apostle’s 
prayer, that it may “ comprehend with all 


38 


saints, what is the breadth and length, and 
height and depth of the love of God which 
passeth all knowledge; and be filled with 
all the fullness of God.” 

But we advance still further, and say that 
it is both the privilege and duty of the mi- 
nister, so far as circumstances will allow, to 
cultivate an acquaintance with the progres- 
sive discoveries of natural science, as fur- 
nishing appropriate and important aids in 
the development and illustration of scripture. 
Far be it from me to insinuate that Revela- 
tion is susceptible of improvement ; — it is a 
perfect system. I only mean that it is ca- 
pable of being better understood, and that 
every advance of science may be made instru- 
mental of giving greater distinctness and im- 
pressiveness to many of its truths. Creation 
is just as truly a divine revelation to man 
as scripture itself. They are kindred volumes. 
Christianity does not abrogate — it only com- 
pletes and confirms the teachings of natural 
religion. It does not demand that we should 
shut our eyes to the light that is shed around 
us in the wonders of the earth and the glory 


39 


of tlie Heavens ; that we should steel our 
hearts to all the emotions that rise within 
us, and the impressions that come to us 
from without ; that we should close our ears 
against the myriad voices of universal his- 
tory, of daily providence, of unfolding science. 
These significant utterances Christianity re- 
cognzes and corroborates, and where they 
shed no light, she diffuses a benignant efful- 
gence. Christianity thus bears an obvious and 
intimate relation to the vast and ever ex- 
panding domain of science, and is capable 
at once of illustrating, and being illustrated 
by all the works and ways of God. Both 
therefore should be studied together, as con- 
tinued commentaries upon each other ; and 
the minister of the gospel who disparages 
the claims of science by shutting his eyes to 
its light, is scarcely less reprehensible than 
the student of nature who refuses to bend 
his reason to the evidences of Christianity. 

The ambassador of Jesus has nothing to fear 
while thus communing with God, through 
the medium of the material universe. The 
religion he proclaims, has always courted 


40 


such investigations, and prospered in their 
results. It is in the very sunlight of science 
that religion flourishes best ; and the higher 
that glorious orb ascends towards his meri- 
dian splendor, the stronger does the Christ- 
ian Temple appear in its foundations, the 
more beautiful in its design, the more har- 
monious in its proportions, and the more 
grand in the entireness of its structure! 
And what an accumulation of dignity gathers 
around the office of him, whose prerogative 
it is thus to stand by these two great sources 
of all knowledge, and proclaim the truth and 
glory of Him who reigns over both — the 
“only wise God and Saviour.” “ / 'magnify 
mine office.” 

IV. We contemplate the dignity of the 
Christian ministry, in the last place, in the 
aids that are pledged to it. 

Among these we specially note the Spirit 
and Providence of God. What has already 
been said sufficiently indicates the estimate 
we place upon a well-trained ministry. But 
in the success of the gospel, we are constantly 


41 


warned against attaching undue importance 
to any amount or fitness of mere instrument- 
ality. Though God works by means, and 
usually renders those most effectual which 
are best adapted to the ends they are ap- 
pointed to accomplish, still let it never be 
forgotten, that a higher power than any 
instrumentality can possess, is necessary to 
render the word effectual unto salvation. 
Whatever the ministry may have accom- 
plished for the good of the world, it has ac- 
complished only as a secondary agency , — the 
Spirit of God, pledged in its efficacious in- 
fluence to the ministry, has been the effi- 
cient cause of all. “Paul may plant, and 
Apollos water, but God giveth the increase.” 
“ Not by might nor by power, but by my 
Spirit, saith the Lord.” The ambassador of 
Christ may labor diligently and faithfully, 
yet will he “ spend his strength in vain, and 
his labor for naught,” unless his ministra- 
tions be accompanied with “power from on 
liigli.'’’ His understanding may be profound, 
his logic convincing, and his pathos over- 
whelming ; he may “ speak in the tongues 
6 


42 


of men and of angels he may press into 
his service all the force of theological erudi- 
tion, and all the resources of science and art ; 
he may seem by his mighty grasp of thought 
to command a willing tribute from every de- 
partment of the empire of truth ; and yet if 
he preach not “in demonstration of the Spirit 
and of power,” he will be but “ as sounding 
brass, ora tinkling cymbal.” It is not within 
the reach of finite agency to convert a soul. 
There is in that soul a region of darkness 
which human genius can not illume ; a do- 
main of depravity, over which human learn- 
ing can throw no saving influence ; a prin- 
ciple of entrenched evil which no force of 
human eloquence can ever extirpate, and 
which will continue to maintain a gloomy 
and successful resistance, till the voice of 
God proclaim its tyrrany at an end ! Wit 
may amuse the fancy, rhetoric may gratify 
the taste, logic may convince the understand- 
ing, and pathos may move the sensibilities, 
but it is the power of the invincible Spirit 
alone that can shake the citadel of the heart, 
and win the soul unto God ! 


43 


It is this omnipotent energy that stands 
pledged in perpetuity to the ministry of 
reconciliation. And how distinguished and 
glorious is this assurance ! When depressed 
in view of his own weakness and the great- 
ness of his work, the humble ambassador of 
the cross is constrained to ask, “ Who is suf- 
ficient for these things?” — he finds in the 
promised presence and efficiency of the 
Spirit, an answer, ever ready and full and 
cheering, “My sufficiency is of God.” Is 
there anything the mind can contemplate, 
more truly sublime and beautiful than this 
alliance of the weakness of humanity with 
the strength of Divinity, thus constituting 
the ministry associate laborers with the eter- 
nal God in the regeneration of the world ! 

But the Providence of God is also pledged 
to aid in the same great enterprise. Christ 
the author of the Gospel and the founder of 
the ministry, is “ Head over all things to 
the Church.” Not only by him were all 
things created, but by him also are they sus- 
tained and controlled and made subservient 
to the accomplishment of his purposes of 


44 


grace. “The government is upon his shoul- 
der,” and He so directs the affairs of earth, 
that every event which affects persons or 
communities, every revolution in the world 
of matter or mind, every commotion that 
agitates Church or State, is an element of 
power under his control, and moves in his 
train to give present success and final tri- 
umph to the ministry of reconciliation. 

This direction and tendency of things may 
not be always obvious to our limited com- 
prehension. "We can see but parts of what 
constitutes the mighty whole, and are often 
constrained to exclaim, “Verily thou art a 
God that hidest thyself, Oh God of Israel, 
the Saviour.” We can not understand how 
events, seemingly the most adverse, are made 
to move the wheels of the chariot of salvation. 
But so it is. And though darkness frequent- 
ly enshroud his operations, and his purposes 
seem to develop through diverse and cir- 
cuitous channels, yet they at length meet and 
terminate in the accomplishment of that 
whereunto they are sent. And though his 
ways be oftentimes in the great waters, and 


45 


those waters be frequently agitated by storms, 
still the Son of God is upon the troubled 
element, and here and there a billow bend- 
ing under his footsteps, and here and there 
a wave ruffled by his movement, reveal to 
us an Almighty energy that has power to 
control the tempest, and when his purposes 
demand it, to say, “ peace, be still. 1 ' 

Such then are the aids secured to the mi- 
nistry in the work to which it is called. And 
in view of the divine condescension in thus 
signalizing the agency of imperfect men by 
lending to it the resources of his energy, the 
spirit of the holy apostle, dilated with senti- 
ments too sublime for utterance, could only 
exclaim in the impotence of overwhelming 
adoration, confidence and joy, u I magnify 
mine office." 

The same pledges, my brethren, belong to 
us, and they constitute the basis of our con- 
fidence and hope in the work in which we 
are engaged. Away then with despondency ! 
Away with fear ! He who has instituted the 
ministry, who has chosen the weak things of 
the world to confound the mighty, has made 


46 


tlie result to depend upon nothing less than 
his own omnipotence. Then “let the hea- 
then rage, and kings set themselves.” His 
counsels shall stand, and he will do all his 
pleasure. “Lo I am with you always,” is 
the standing pledge of the final triumph of 
the work of the ministry. This is the badge 
of our office ; this the shekinah of our sanc- 
tuary; this the “hiding of our power,” this 
the motto upon our banner ; and by this we 
conquer ! 

The pertinency of the foregoing train of 
remark, to the present occasion, is, I trust, 
sufficiently obvious, to supersede the neces- 
sity of any formal application. 

The importance of the business which has 
convened us this day, can not well be over- 
rated. At the call of the denomination to 
which we belong, we are met to induct into 
office a new professor, to occupy the place 
made vacant by one who for many years dis- 
charged with unwearied fidelity and distin- 
guished ability its responsible duties. In its 
bearings upon the prosperity of this seat of 


47 


sacred learning, and in its relations to the 
ministry, and the interests of men, the trans- 
actions of this hour are fraught with a so- 
lemnity and importance, which no thinking 
mind can fail to apprehend, and with which 
no feeling heart can fail to be impressed. 

To this venerable institution, around which 
cluster so many hopes, and for which have 
ascended so many prayers ; to the affection- 
ate confidence and cooperation of those who 
have been so long its ornaments and bene- 
factors, the church commits this day, the 
talents, the zeal, the labors of a “brother 
beloved;” with the earnest supplication that 
the relation thus formed may receive the 
approving smiles of Him in whose name and 
for whose glory it is consummated. And 
sure I am, that in reference to this school of 
the prophets, every friend of the cause of 
the Redeemer present, will unite with me in 
the prayer, “For my brethren and compan- 
ion’s sake;” for the sake of the prosperity of 
Zion ; for the sake of the venerable men who 
are here called to labor; for the sake of the 
ministry of reconciliation; for the sake of 


the glory of Christ, I will now say, “ Peace 
be within thy walls, and prosperity within 
thy palaces. Because of the house of the 
Lord our God, I will seek thy good.” 









